The regional covers for the NCAA Tournament are out. This is the one we care about:
Courtesy of Sports Illustrated
I’ll be getting the Big 11 version out here. Looks like I’ll have to ask my dad to save this one for me.
March 18, 2009
Way to go T.J. Porter. Usually it is just Wannstache jokes that gets Pitt the mentions on EDSBS.
Pitt wide receiver T.J. Porter has been suspended from the team at
least through spring football as a result of an arrest on Feb. 22 for
driving while intoxicated and driving with a suspended license. He had
been scheduled for a March 3 preliminary hearing, but that has been
postponed until April 1.It is the second offense for Porter, who was arrested on May 5, 2008
for DUI, purchasing alcohol as a minor, careless driving and failing to
obey traffic control devices. His license was suspended and he was put
into the court-supervised rehabilitaton program Oct. 24.
It will take a bigger effort than this to win the Fulmer Cup. Get to work, guys.
Pitt will be playing in the CBE Classic next year.
The field includes Texas, Wichita State and Iowa. Each team will play a couple games at home, and the four regional hosts (i.e., name teams) are guaranteed to advance to Kansas City. There they will play two more games.
Tickets for the games in KC went on sale today.
The actual match-ups in KC will not be announced for a while.
Excellent for Pitt. A solid looking exempt tournament that gets ESPN coverage. The way it looks is they will try to set it up so Pitt and Texas would meet in the Championship game.
Okay, late I know.
Here is the Pitt Blather Tournament group. I’m using ESPN.com Tournament set-up.
The Group Name: Pitt Blather
This is a private group, so to join you need the Group Password: FieldsGroin
The ETSU Buccaneers, that is.
The Bucs are coached by a guy with coaching bloodlines.
Gene Bartow, the former coach at Memphis, UCLA and UAB, is Murry Bartow’s father. Gene Bartow led Memphis to the national championship game in 1973, took UCLA to the Final Four in 1976 and later led UAB to seven consecutive NCAA tournament appearances.
“My dad has been my biggest influence as a coach,” Bartow said. “I played for him at UAB, was an assistant under him and then he was my boss when I was the head coach there. He was a great coach. He just had a great feel for the game. He was a tremendous player’s coach. I was able to watch him and learn from him.”
His apprenticeship under Knight was a big influence as well. In his only two seasons at Indiana, he got to experience a bitter disappointment in the tournament the first year and a national championship the next.
In 1986, No. 3 seed Indiana was upset by No. 14 seed Cleveland State. One year later, the Hoosiers cut down the nets after Keith Smart made a baseline jumper as the clock wound down to beat Syracuse, 74-73.
His father Gene, also started the UAB basketball program — and set his son up as the next coach. The younger Bartow lasted six season. He was fired after a sub-.500 season.
A touching profile on Courtney Pigram, ETSU’s shooting guard who had interest from top programs but injuries and grades kept him from going to a top school.
Here’s a video preview of the team.
Yes, there are still more than a few articles out there bringing up Pitt’s past disappointments and saying that this will be more of the same. The fact is, the number and breadth of punditry putting Pitt in the Final Four and even in the Championship game (and dare we say cutting down the final net) are much higher. So much so, that it really is difficult to gather all the links.
It will take some effort and a bit of denial to build up the requisite outrage and righteous indignation at being disrespected at this point. And plenty already have issued their dire warnings of the disappointment if it does not happen.
Nice feature length piece on Pitt and DeJuan Blair from Dick Weiss.
Meanwhile Sam Young took it upon himself to talk with Blair.
“The main thing,” Young said, “and I’ve talked to DeJuan about it, is making sure that he stays on the floor.
“He agreed with me 100 percent.”
Young — and the rest of college basketball — realizes the importance of Blair, the 6-foot-7 All-America center, staying out of foul trouble as No. 1 seed Pitt (28-4) prepares for a hopeful deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
…
Young’s message was clear: Don’t take any unnecessary chances. You are too valuable.
“If we can keep everybody on the floor, I don’t think we will have a problem offensively,” Young said. “I told (Blair) I feel like he can score with the best of them. If someone scores on you, you can come right back and score on them. And if you don’t score, you are going to get the rebound.
“But we need you in the game, point blank. He definitely agreed with me and he’s going to make sure he stays in the game.”
It can’t hurt.
